Encore

Can’t answer your question but I would strongly suggest you getting a Breville bambino and something like a Baratza encore ESP for the grinder. All in one machines , and especially Ninja ones, are not the best (Ninjas known to fail quite a lot). Bambino $299 and Baratza $199. If you get an all in on

Bambino + baratza encore ESP is better for sure

I use a Baratza Encore. Nothing wrong with that. It grinds enough to make a good shot. What more do you need?

That's absolutely not true, you can get a used baratza encore esp for like 100. Even the regular encore can grind fine enough for espresso, the increments are just too big. I had the same machine as OP, i just pulled the plastic insert out of the stock portafilter and put a non pressurised basket in

You can run it with pre ground coffee using a pressurised basket but it kind of defeats the point of having a manual espresso machine. I'd put your budget into a decent grinder capable of espresso (e.g. Baratza Encore Esp) and slowly upgrade elsewhere. A self levelling tamper is very helpful and als

Check out the Baratza Encore ESP Pro - under $300. Good grinder. Don't just buy any cheap grinder. Buy a grinder that has fine grind settings for espresso.

As others have said no need for a bottomless portafilter. Just buy a unpressurised basket to put in your portafilter that came with the machine You can even use the pressurised (one hole at bottom) basket with a coarse grind but better to use unpressurised (lots of holes bottom), and an espresso cap

Switching out M2 burr is not difficult, and Baratza has instructions online. I have Encore that I modded several years ago with M2 burr, and I have Breville Barista Express. The combination works perfectly. The Encore is quite capable. I generally find the sweet spot with fresh espresso roasts to be

Trotzdem eher ungleichmäßige Mahlung, was für Espresso sehr schlecht ist. Das selbe gilt für Sage Smart Grinder Pro. Baratza Encore ESP oder DF54 sind gute "Einsteiger" Mühlen für gut gemahlene Bohnen. Ansonsten Handmühle und guter alter Akkuschrauber

You don’t care for coffee and your wife prefers vanilla lattes. Save the cash and get a baratza encore esp pro. It’s more than enough for good espresso. If you don’t mind spending more just for the hell of it, look into the Niche zero or Lagom Casa.